Overview

• A van crash at 6:50 AM on the M5 southbound between Junctions 9 (Tewkesbury) and 10 (Cheltenham) brought traffic to a standstill.
• All southbound traffic was temporarily held for around 20 minutes before two lanes reopened, leaving one lane closed for recovery operations.
• Significant tailbacks have been reported, with congestion persisting during the morning rush hour.
• Traffic monitoring services provide conflicting clearance forecasts, with Inrix estimating normal flow by 8:45–9:00 AM and Traffic Update projecting delays until 10:00–10:15 AM.
• This incident follows a series of recent motorway disruptions, highlighting the challenges of managing peak-hour traffic on heavily used routes.